Technically speaking
by daughterofacountry
Summary: Yuki Katayama is the adopted cousin of Haruhi. He's a second year student, and get's accepted into Ouran Acadamy a few months after the start of the school year. Knowing the power of his looks and charm over girls and boys alike, Haruhi suggests him as a new host. He's quickly appointed as the club 'flirt' and manages to bring in plenty of new customers. Male customers.
1. A new host

"Guys! I have exciting news!" Haruhi yelled, rushing into Music room three and towards the host club.  
"You've decided to dress like a girl again?! How wonderful!" Tamaki exclaimed, pulling her into his arms and hugging her tightly.  
"No senpai. I haven't decided to do that." She said flatly, pushing him away. "You know I got called to the headteacher's office? Well, I was asked to show a new student around school. That student just so happens to be my cousin Yuki, and I think he'd make an awesome host. You could interview him and stuff, but even walking around for a little while, everybody was looking at him."  
"A new host, huh?" Tamaki mused, coming out of the emo corner he'd retreated to before. "And the whole school's already interested in him. We'll have to meet him. See if he's worthy."  
"If he's your cousin he's bound to have some form of good looks. Which side of the family is he from?" Asked Hikaru and Kaoru, in perfect unison, of course.  
"Actually, technically speaking we're not related. My mother's sister adopted him when he was 5. No one really knows where his looks came from, because none of my family ever met his birth parents, neither did the adoption agency. They think he's part Italian though."  
"Hm..well, having some Italian blood could help bring in more customers. Ladies do love boys from foreign lands." Kyoya said, noting something down.  
"I have to go find him, he's about to finish a lesson and it's my job to make sure he doesn't get lost. I'll bring him here later so you can all meet him. ...And by the way, he'd bring in plenty of new customers, but most of them aren't going to be girls."

-time skip, and Yuki's P.O.V-

"So this is where your boys hang then, huh?" I asked, smirking at Haruhi. She'd just taken me to a music room, that was supposedly abandoned, but housed the host club.  
"They're not _my_ boys. They're the host club. And they're the only ones, other than you, obviously, that know I'm a girl."  
"I know, I know. You've told me that like five times already. Anyway, come on, I want to meet them. Everyone says they're hot."  
"You're not here to flirt with them Yuki. You're here to show them you can be a host. So...be good." She instructed, opening the door. Rose petals flew out, and everything faded out to reveal the hosts. The rumours were right, they were hot.  
"Welcome to the Ouran Host Club." They said. There was one, a blonde boy, sat on a throne like chair. He stood, and walked over to me.  
"Ah, you must be Yuki. Haruhi told us about you." He said, circling me. Tamaki Suoh. Second year. He'd be in my classes, so getting on his good side was a necessity. A set of twins stepped forward, looking me up and down.  
"He is pretty attractive. Who knows how many customers he'd bring in if he used his looks properly." They said. Hikaru and Kaoru Hitachiin. First years. Same year as Haru. She could help win those two over.  
"There would be the matter of your type." Another boy said, from the back of the room. I looked over to see who it was, and saw a tall boy, with black hair and glasses. Kyoya Ootori. Also in my year. Definitely needed him on side.  
"My type?"  
"Yes, your type. Each of the hosts has a specific type. Tamaki is the prince, then we have the boy lolita, in the form of Hunny, the strong, silent type, which is Mori, the little devils, the twins, the natural, that's Haruhi, and me, the cool type. In order for you to be a host, you would need to have a type."  
"He'd be the bad boy, or the flirt." Haruhi said, before I could think of anything. "He'll flirt with pretty much anybody, plus there's the fact that he's gay...we could base his type off of that."  
"I'm not gay. I'm bi. I just happen to prefer guys."  
"Well then, it would seem your type is fairly obvious. You will be the flirt! We'll test you tomorrow, to see how you do. Kyoya, explain his terms." Tamaki said, deciding that I'd gotten past the first stage of this weird interview without consulting anyone.  
"If the guests you entertain tomorrow like you, you can come back for the rest of the week. Since we've been told you will tempt in male customers, your goal will be to entertain 5 men by the end of the week. If you can, you'll be a host. If you cannot, you won't. Simple. You can observe us for today. Think you can do it?" He said, pushing his glasses up. They glinted suddenly, in a way that looked as though he were trying to intimidate me. After waiting a moment, I nodded.  
"Oh yeah. I'll do it."


	2. The first day of hosting

"Good afternoon ladies." I said, walking over to the table I would be sat at today. It was my first day hosting, my trial day, and I was only entertaining girls. Not that it mattered, they were still guests. "Sorry to keep you waiting, I got lost again." I hadn't really gotten lost, the hosts had been lecturing me on what to do and what not to do, but even so, I chuckled at my supposed stupidity and sat down.  
"Oh, I thought Haruhi was showing you around, he didn't leave you, did he?" One of the girls asked. I think her name was Ayumi.  
"No, nothing like that. I didn't wait at the classroom. I thought I remembered the way here. Guess I was wrong. But hey, I'm here now. And just as well, wouldn't want to miss out on spending time with you lovely ladies." Even just saying that was enough to make them blush. It was quite cute actually. I couldn't help but wonder what they would do if I really started flirting.  
We sat chatting for a while, and then I happened to mention that Haruhi was my cousin.  
"You're related to Haruhi?" A different girl said. Kimiko, I think. "You don't look alike, I'd never have guessed."  
"Well, we're not related by blood. Haruhi's aunt adopted me when I was little. There were never any secrets about it, we always knew we weren't biologically related, but we're close all the same. I was kind of able to help when his mother died, since I'd lost my birth mother. I don't really remember her, but I have a picture. I don't even know who my father was." I said, shrugging sadly and looking down, before glancing back at the girls. All three of the girls at my table were staring at me with wide eyes, and their hands were clasped together.  
"Do you have a father now Yuki?" Asked the third girl. Fairly sure her name was Machi.  
"No. It's just me and my mother. She was with somebody when she adopted me, but it didn't work out. Besides, we work better when it's just us. She cooks, and I take care of the chores. I do most the shopping too, sometimes me and her go together, but most the time I go with Haruhi." They seemed to like the idea of me and Haru shopping together, and fangirled. I smiled at them, which made them fangirl even more.  
"That's so sweet Yuki." Ayumi said.  
"Yes, it really is." Agreed Machi.  
"Yuki...are you going to be here again tomorrow?" Kimiko asked.  
"Well, I was told that I could stay all week if today went well. So really it's up to you ladies. What do you say, can I come back tomorrow?" I said smoothly, winking at them. I was suddenly aware of the hosts watching, waiting to see what the girls would say.  
"We'd love it if you did." Exclaimed Kimiko.  
"Yes, we really would." Machi agreed quietly.  
"Can we request you if you come back?" Ayumi asked, and all three seemed to hold their breath as they waited for me to respond.  
"I'd like nothing more, my sweethearts." I said, winking at them again.


	3. Hiroshi Koizumi

Since I'd had a good reaction on my trial day, that meant I could stay for the rest of the week. I wasn't a fully fledged host yet, that would only happen if I could get 5 male customers. I wasn't quite sure how I was going to do that, but there had to be a way. I had to start with finding out which boys would want to be entertained by a guy.  
I was already certain of one. The rumour that I was looking for men to request me got around fast, and there was one boy, a first year, that got all nervous every time I went anywhere near him. He'd blush and look down, nearly dropping whatever he had in his hands at the time, be it books or pencils, or a stack of papers. On Wednesday, I spotted him in the corridors, getting picked on by a couple second years.  
"Hey! Leave him alone!" I yelled, walking quickly over to them, and drawing myself up to my full height. They'd taken his school books, and were holding them in the air, where he couldn't reach them. "Give his books back." I ordered.  
"Why should we?" One mocked. He was obviously the leader. "If he wants them back, he should just take them."  
"Maybe you shouldn't have taken them in the first place." I snapped back, reaching up and easily snatching the book from his hand. That may have been a bad move, as he lashed out. He managed to land a punch on the side of my face, but when he swung again I managed to dodge his fist, grab his arm, and twist it behind his back. "Now, waddaya say you _never_ take his books again, huh?" I hissed in his ear.  
"Okay, okay. We won't take them anymore. Just let me go!" After holding him there for another moment, just to make sure he was serious, I let him go. The other guys he was with dropped the books they were holding, and all of them ran away. The first year instantly knelt down to collect them, and I crouched down too, picking one up. I smiled as I handed it to him.  
"Are you alright?"  
"Y-Yeah...Thank you. Nobody's ever helped me out with those guys before." He stammered.  
"Well if they bother you again, you come let me know, okay. I'll deal with them. ..What's your name?"  
"Hiroshi Koizumi."  
"Hello Hiroshi. I'm Yuki Katayama."  
"You're the new host, aren't you?"  
"Well technically I'm not a host just yet. I have to get five guys to request me by the end of the week, then I'll be a host."  
"Really? I didn't know guys could request any of the hosts. No guys ever go there, only girls."  
"Yeah, I know. I was host for three ladies yesterday, that was my trial day. They're gonna request me again today. They're nice enough girls, but it won't help me become a full time host."  
"Well...I guess...if you wanted... _I_ could request you." He offered nervously.  
"Really? Yeah, that'd be great. Don't make yourself uncomfortable though."  
"No, I wouldn't be uncomfortable. Plus...I kinda owe you one anyway."  
"Nah. You don't owe me anything. ..Well, we both better get going. Don't wanna be late for class." I smiled at him again, standing and holding out my hand to help him up. He blushed lightly as he took my hand. After making sure he was okay, I started to walk away, pausing when I got to the end of the corridor. I turned round and, seeing that he was still there, and staring at me, winked at him. His cheeks turned a dark red, and I chuckled before walking to class.  
"Hey Kyoya-kun." I said, stopping by his desk as I walked to mine. "I just got my first male customer. One down, four to go. This is easy." I smirked at him, then walked to my desk without giving him a chance to reply.

That afternoon I went back to the host club, and was slightly surprised to see that the three girls from the previous day were already there waiting for me.  
"Hey ladies. Seems I have a habit of keeping you waiting, huh? Sorry about that." I apologized, sitting down and smiling at them.  
"We don't mind. We just wanted to get here early." Ayumi said quickly.  
"Just to warn you, I think another guest will be coming along soon. ...A boy."  
"A boy?" Asked Machi, clearly shocked.  
"Coming to visit the host club?" Kimiko exclaimed, in the same tone of voice.  
"Well, yes...but try not to judge him. He's a first year...and I think he's nervous about coming here. ..Ah! There he is now." I gestured in the direction of the door, where Hiroshi was stood awkwardly. Kyoya went over before I had a chance to, and they had a short conversation before Kyoya directed him towards the my table. I smiled and gave a small wave, which he returned hesitantly. As he got nearer, I stood up from my seat. There were only four seats at the table, so I had to find another one. "Hey Hiroshi. Why don't you take a seat here, I'll just go grab another chair. You can meet these three sweethearts. Ayumi, Machi, and Kimiko. Girls, this is Hiroshi. I'll be right back." I quickly went to grab a chair, not wanting to leave Hiroshi for longer than was necessary. He was the only boy in here that wasn't a host, and loads of the girls were staring at him. I put my chair next to his when I went back to the table with one, and gave him a small, reassuring smile as I sat down.  
We all sat talking, (and in my case, flirting), for a while, and since Hiroshi had come in later than the girls, that meant his appointed ended later too, so I had a couple minutes to make sure he was okay.  
"Hey...I know you're probably really uncomfortable. I did ask the girls to be nice...guess they didn't really wanna listen. ..I'm sorry."  
"It wasn't your fault Yuki."  
"I know...I just feel kinda bad for you. But you know, when I get a couple more guys to come, I'm sure it won't be anywhere near as awkward."  
"Probably not. ...I don't know how you're going to get four more guys to come here by the end of the week though...you only have tomorrow and Friday left. ...I could help...if you'd like. ...I know a couple guys that I think I could convince."  
"You'd do that, huh? Thanks. I really think I can do this, especially with your help."  
"Yuki, Kyoya-senpai told me to tell you the appointment's over." Haruhi said, appearing from nowhere.  
"Oh, okay. Thank you Haru." I said, after laughing at myself for jumping when she appeared.  
"So, I guess I'd better go."  
"Come on, I'll show you out." I said, smiling at Hiroshi and standing up. He stood too, and we walked to the door. He reached for the handle, but I took it before he could, holding it open for him. "Don't forget you're a guest."  
"I'm trying not to, but it's difficult, since I'm the only guy here."  
"I know. Just remember, affection knows no gender." I smiled at him again, and he smiled back.  
"...Yuki...can I come back tomorrow?" He asked, seemly slightly scared of the words he spoke.  
"Of course you can." I promised. He smiled again, and then went to leave. "See you tomorrow handsome." I called after him, chuckling and winking when he turned and blushed.  
"Handsome? Really?" Haruhi asked sarcastically, making me jump again.  
"Stop doing that. And yes, really. He's a guest, isn't he. We have to make all our guests feel good about themselves. Plus I _am_ meant to be the club flirt, remember?" I grinned, winking at her as well.


	4. 5 out of 5

The next day at the host club, only one of the girls turned up.  
"Ayumi and Kimiko go to a music club on Thursdays, that's why they aren't here." Machi explained, when I asked why they weren't there. I was relieved that it wasn't because of Hiroshi. He was nervous about coming the day before, so if he thought he was making other guests uncomfortable, he might not show up again. I didn't want that. He was a nice kid, sure, I didn't like him in that way, but he was cute all the same.  
"Hi Yuki." Hiroshi said suddenly, appearing at the table.  
"Oh, hey Handsome. I see you brought a friend." He blushed when I called him 'handsome', and I smiled.  
"Y-Yeah. This is Itsuki." Itsuki was slightly taller than Hiroshi, and his hair was darker, though they were both brunettes, his eyes were darker too, though again, they were both brown.  
"Well then, welcome Itsuki. It's a pleasure to meet you." I stood and gave a little bow, before gesturing to two empty seats at the table. "Why don't you lovely gentlemen take a seat, hmm?"  
Itsuki was actually a very interesting person. He was in class B, so he didn't really know Haruhi or the twins, but it was clear that he certainly knew of them. He actually said that if it wasn't considered weird for guys to be interested in the host club, he would probably have come and requested the twins.  
"You know, I think they'd actually have been okay with it. Haruhi told me that the first time he came here they thought he wanted to request somebody, even though he was really just looking for somewhere quiet to study." It was really quite difficult to remember to say 'he' when talking about her. "But they all seemed cool with it, they just thought it was strange for the famous honour student to be 'so openly gay', as they put it. So I'm sure they'd have been open to it. Maybe you should give it a go." I told him, hoping to encourage him somewhat.  
"I don't know...none of them ever seemed at all interested in guys, even as friends. You only ever see them with girls or each other, guys just don't come into the picture. That's why I was nervous about coming to see you. Hiroshi told me you were fine with hosting for guys, but I wasn't convinced. ...I'm sorry about that...I just didn't think that _any_ of the hosts would be okay with it." He explained, looking down at his hands.  
"No need to apologise, I guess it does seem a little unusual when you put it like that. But you're always welcome here at my table, all guys are. Even if they aren't necessarily attracted to other guys." He looked a little panicked when I said that, and there was quite a long silence before he worked up the courage to speak again.  
"...Yuki...are...are _you_ attracted to other guys?" He finally asked.  
"Yeah. I'm attracted to girls too."  
"So..you're bi?"  
"Yeah, exactly. Although I have to admit...I kinda prefer guys. No offence Machi, you're awesome."  
"None taken." Machi said quickly, with a small giggle and blush.  
Now that Itsuki was slightly more comfortable with me, and everyone was comfortable with there being male guests in the room, the four of us were able to engage in friendly chit chat. We all ended up telling funny stories from when we were younger, and we were having so much fun we almost didn't realise when the appointment was over.  
By lunchtime on Friday I was getting worried. I'd managed to find another guy to request me in one of my classes. He was a second year, (obviously), and his name was Kenji Yamamoto. He was more secure about his sexuality than Hiroshi or Itsuki, and he actually approached me, asking if I was really a host for gay or bisexual guys as well as girls, when I said I was, he said he'd request me, but I was still freaking out a little. Inwardly, of course, if I was going to be a host I had to keep my persona no matter what was going through my head. Somehow I managed to stay flirty all day, even though inside I was panicking, thinking that there was no way I was going to get five guys to request me. I had three already, but I only had a couple of hours left before I had to be at the host club, and I didn't know what I could do. But, as it turns out, I'd already done everything I had to.  
I was 20 minutes into the appointment, with Kyoya watching both me, and the time, to see if I was somehow going to meet the quota. And somehow, I did.  
They appeared completely out of the blue, and they certainly arrived in style. Made the whole room stop and stare. They entered hand in hand, jackets slung over opposite shoulders. But that wasn't what made people stare, oh no. What made people stare was the fact that one had bright blue hair, and the other had bright purple. I'd seen the two of them around, they were third years, everybody knew of them. But I had no idea they were a couple. The went over to Kyoya, spoke to him for a moment, then headed over to my table. The blue haired one pulled out the one spare chair, and the purple haired one sat down.  
"Uhh...hello.." I said, slightly unsure as to what was happening.  
"Aw, he _is_ cute." The purple haired boy said, smiling at me.  
"Hey, I'm right here." The other said jokily.  
"Oh come on Takehiko, you know I'm right. Look at him, he's so cute."  
"Yeah, I guess."  
"Excuse me, are you going to stop talking about him like he's not here, or should we get back to our conversation?" Hiroshi snapped. He hadn't been comfortable with Kenji being there, and now there were two more guys here, he seemed even more uncomfortable. Could he seriously be jealous? It didn't matter, not right now.  
"Hiroshi!" I cried out, shocked at him. "Don't be so rude, everyone's welcome at this table, okay." He slouched in his chair, pouting.  
"Seems he doesn't like us much, huh Takehiko?" The purple haired boy said, still smiling. The boy who was evidently called Takehiko leant down, draping his arms over the other's shoulders and resting his chin atop the mess of violet hair.  
"I guess not Hachiro. Hishiro, was it? Don't worry sweetheart, we won't steal him from you." At that, Hiroshi turned a bright red, not bothering to correct the older boy on his name, and slouched further down in his seat. "We won't even be staying long, we just wanted to meet the guy everyone's talking about."  
"Aww, I wanna stay." Hachiro whined, looking up and giving Takehiko puppy eyes.  
"Fine, but I'm not standing the whole time. Budge over."  
"I can get you another chair if you'd like." I offered.  
"Thanks, but we're good. C'mon Hachi, stand up, then you can sit on me." Hachiro grinned at him, hopping up from the seat, then sitting on his lap when he was sat down. Takehiko snaked his arms around Hachiro's waist, holding him tightly against him. "Now, where were we? Oh yeah, Yuki, do you know _why_ the whole school is talking about you right now?"  
"Uhh, because I'm a new host?" I asked, shrugging slightly.  
"Well, yeah, but also because you're hosting for guys as well as girls. Not only is this unheard of, it's amazing."  
"A lot of people think it's kind of weird, but we think you're awesome." Hachiro interjected.  
"Indeed we do. It's great, all the younger boys, like Hishiro here, have somewhere they can go now. It took us years to be comfortable with who we are, because we never had a role model telling us it was okay to be like this. Now any boys that are, or think they might be, the same, have you to reassure them that it's okay, that it's normal. They need that."  
"Wow...thank you...I guess. But, I'm really not trying to be anything special. If the younger boys feel more confident being themselves because of me, then, great, but all I'm doing is being me. And I'm nothing special." I said modestly. It was true, I was just being myself, what was so special about that? But then, if it helped people, who was I to argue it?  
"Taki? Can we keep him?" Hachiro asked, turning to look at Takehiko.  
"No. He's adorable, but I don't think it would be fair if we kept him all to ourselves."  
"You can't _keep him_ anyway. He's a person, people aren't pets." Hiroshi snapped, scowling at them.  
"Well, whether a person's a pet or not depends on the owner. Take Hachi for example." Takehiko said, smirking. Hachiro turned, pretending to look shocked by him, but there was an undeniable sparkle in his eyes.  
"Taki! Don't say things like that in front of children!"  
"Oh please, you know you wanna hear it." Takehiko said smugly in response, before pressing a gentle kiss onto Hachiro's lips, which he eagerly returned.  
The rest of the appointment went in pretty much the same way, Takehiko and Hachiro flirting with each other, and me, while Hiroshi scowled at them, and the others were perfectly normal, chatting away with everybody.  
At the end, I walked with them all to the door, saying goodbye to the ladies first, then the boys. Takehiko and Hachiro went off the same way they'd come in, fingers intertwined and jackets slung over their shoulders. That's how they went everywhere, and I couldn't help wondering if the jackets they carried had ever actually been worn. Hiroshi lingered for a moment, looking embarrassed.  
"I...I'm sorry Yuki. I shouldn't have been so rude. I just...they were talking about you like you were a dog or something...and I-"  
"Hiroshi, it's okay. I get it. Just don't do it again, okay?"  
"Okay. Thanks Yuki."  
"No problem handsome." I said, winking at him.  
"Yuki. Come here please." Kyoya's voice suddenly sounded, and I wandered over to him, having now seen all my guests off.  
"I did it. I got five guys to request me."  
"So it would seem. We'll have no more of these close calls, hosts can't be seen to finish things only at the last second."  
"You got it Kyoya, I'll be the most organised I've ever been." I promised, smiling. I heard Haruhi laughing from behind me, and turned. "What's so funny?"  
"You'll be the most organised you've ever been. That's not saying much, have you even seen the state of your schoolbag? Or your room for that matter?"  
"Haruhi! Why do you know what his bedroom looks like?! WHAT WERE YOU DOING IN HIS ROOM!?" Tamaki suddenly appeared, yelling at her.  
"Oh calm down senpai, he's my cousin, remember. Besides, it shouldn't matter if I've been in his room anyway." She replied. All I did was laugh, while Tamaki yelled at her again. Guess I'd have to get used to this, seeing as I was an official host now.


	5. Party time

My first event with the host club was a big fancy party. Neither Haruhi nor myself knew how to waltz, so we were set the task of mastering the dance by Tamaki, and got ourselves tutors. Haruhi was being taught by this random girl who liked teacups but refused to admit she liked teacups...I don't really know what's going on with her, but whatever, while I was being taught by Machi.  
"You're really getting the hang of this Yuki." She praised me happily, smiling up at me.  
"That's only because I have such a wonderful teacher." I replied, earning a blush from her.  
It was actually a fairly simple dance to learn, for me anyway, Haru fell over a couple times, and though she didn't find it funny, I couldn't help but snigger each time she did. At one point while she was practising, I cut in, sweeping away with Haruhi, and leaving her rather stunned looking teacher behind.  
"Yuki! What are you doing?" She yelped as I spun her around, keeping up the facade of thinking she was a guy, of course.  
"What do you think I'm doing, I'm dancing. Gotta practise dancing with guys don't I?" I explained jokily.  
"That doesn't mean you should be practising with me! Find someone else to practise with." Haru instructed, pulling herself from my arms and returning to her teacher, apologising about me, while I just laughed.  
After looking around the room for a moment, I walked over to the twins, figuring I would be more likely to convince one of them to dance with me than anyone else.  
"Hey guys. Either of you fancy a dance?" I asked. The two of them just looked up at me from their seats, blinking at me in confusion.  
"I need to practise dancing with guys. A couple of my guests are coming to the party, and I figured it'd be nice if they got to dance too, so, I need a guy to dance with. Do either of you want to?" I explained, looking between the two of them. They looked back at each other, before one of them, I think it was Hikaru, shrugged.  
"Sure, I guess. Just don't step on me." He agree, standing up.  
"I'll try not to, but I'm still a beginner." I replied jokily, walking with him to the spot I'd been practising at. Hesitantly, he took my hand, and then went to put his hand on my waist, but I stopped him, moving it to my shoulder instead.  
"Nu-uh. I'm leading." I said, and the look of confusion returned on his face.  
"O...kay. ...Never danced like this before." He mumbled in response.  
"Yeah, I know. I'd let you lead, but I'm taller than you."  
"Not by much." He argued, looking up to try and judge the height difference, while I just laughed, before spinning him round, getting a small cry of surprise from him.

-time skip-

The night of the party came around faster than I thought it would, and before I knew it we were all gathered on the stairs. Tamaki flipped down from a balcony to declare the start of the party, and everyone went and found their first dance partners. I was thrilled to see Hiroshi in the hall as I danced around with Kimiko. When that first dance was over, I went over to him. He was stood with Itsuki, who was gazing after one of the twins on the dance floor, and neither of them noticed as I walked over, so I tapped him on the shoulder.  
"Hey handsome. Wanna dance?" I asked, winking at him.  
"You...You want to dance with me?" He asked, a faint blush rising on his cheeks.  
"Of course I do. Are you okay with me leading?"  
"Sure I am Yuki."  
"Come on then." With that, I took his hand, and lead him out onto the dance floor. He stumbled a few times, since lots of people were staring and he wasn't used to dancing with the other person leading, but I kept talking to him to stop him focusing on those things. Unfortunately it didn't quite work, and as soon as the dance was over he ran from the dance floor. I don't know if that was when he left, but I didn't see him for the rest of the night.  
I danced with Machi next, then Ayumi, and then I was going to see if I could convince Haruhi to dance with me, but she seemed to have completely vanished, so I couldn't. For a little while, I stood at the edge of the room, watching as everyone danced. I could see Takehiko and Hachiro dancing on the other side of the room. I didn't know they were even here, but they looked quite sweet, Takehiko leading with his arms around Hachiro's waist, and Hachiro's arms around his neck and head resting on his shoulder. I could also see all of the hosts, besides Haruhi and Tamaki, on the floor. ...Hang on...nearly all the hosts. Hikaru wasn't there either. At least, I think it was Hikaru, it's hard to tell which one's which when they're moving around and there are people in the way.  
I spotted him sitting in one of the corners, so wandered over.  
"Hey." I greeted, taking the chair next to him. He jumped slightly, as though he hadn't noticed me come over, and then nodded his head.  
"Hi." We sat in what felt like content silence, until he cleared his throat, shifting uncomfortably in his chair.  
"Hey um...Yuki...do you...do you..." It was clear that he was trying to ask a question, but couldn't quite get the words out. "You know what, never mind, it's not important."  
"Hikaru, come on, what were you gonna ask?" I kept my voice gentle, not wanting to pressure him, but to let him know he could trust me enough to ask. He took a deep breath, before standing and holding out his hand to me, but refusing to look in my direction.  
"Do you want to dance?"  
"Sure, just don't step on me." He actually seemed shocked when I took his hand, but smiled at me when I smiled at him. We walked out onto the dance floor together, and turned to face each other, then he put his hand on my shoulder, earning us both gasps from the surrounding fangirls. Hikaru blushed lightly, and I simply smiled, placing my hand on his waist and beginning to dance. I could see the shocked faces of the girls around us, and in the background I spotted the other hosts looking as well. Hikaru noticed Kaoru looking, and tried to pull away from me, but I tightened my grip on him ever so slightly, hoping to reassure him without actually saying anything. Thankfully, the attention of everyone in the room was soon diverted, since there was a special dance outside between two of the guests. One of which turned out to be the girl that had taught Haruhi to dance.  
There was supposed to be a kiss given by Tamaki, but when it got to that part, and we were all stood on the balconies outside, it was revealed that it would be Haruhi instead, and she had to kiss the teacup girl on the cheek. None of us saw that as a big deal, besides Tamaki, for some reason, who dived down the stairs, only to slip on a banana peel, I have no idea where it came from, but whatever, and push Haruhi forwards. She ended up kissing the girl on the lips, and jumping backwards. I couldn't help myself from finding it funny, and whistled loudly. It didn't go down to well with Haru, and she glared up at me, but I just shrugged and grinned.

After all the guests were gone, we had to stay to clean up. I made a point of sticking close to Hikaru, hoping to get a chance to talk to him. Eventually, Kaoru got called off to do a job somewhere else, leaving the two of us alone.  
"Hikaru. Did you actually want to dance with me earlier?" I asked, continuing to fold tablecloths.  
"I asked didn't I." He responded, after a few moments of silence.  
"Well, yeah, but...when we were actually dancing...you didn't seem to want to be there."  
"It's a little weird when everyone's staring."  
"People stare at you all the time, you're a host Hikaru."  
"That's...different...they're staring at me and Kaoru. ...They expect that sort of thing when it's me and him, they don't expect that with me and you."  
"Then why did you do it? Why did you ask me to dance if you weren't comfortable with people seeing us?"  
"...I...I guess I just...pictured it differently." I looked up at him then, but he wouldn't look at me. He kept his head down, and turned away so that I couldn't see his face.  
"What did you picture?" I asked softly, but received no reply. "What did you picture Hikaru?" Hikaru sighed, putting down the decorations he was holding, and turning round to look at me.  
"I don't know. I just...I kind of pictured...not being able to see anyone else. If you really have to know..." His voice trailed off as he realised what he was about to say, and he blushed, looking down, speaking quietly now.  
"...It was supposed to be...romantic."


	6. A new manager and a movie

Hikaru wouldn't speak to me for a while after the party. He was too embarrassed, and got all fidgety whenever we ended up near each other. I tried to make conversation, and make little jokes, so he'd know everything was okay between us, but it didn't work. He wasn't outright avoiding me, but I think that was just for show, so no one would ask what was going on. I know Kaoru had, but by the fact he always seemed to be looking at one or the other of us in confusion, he clearly hadn't received an answer. I was starting to get worried he was going to carry on ignoring me forever, so I figured I may as well try and talk to him at least one more time, and it had to be alone.  
Luckily, an opportunity came up before too long. I'd thought it would take some kind of intervention on my part, since he was almost never away from Kaoru, but I was happily surprised to be wrong. I was just walking down the corridor, and out of the corner of my eye, I spotted a mess of ginger hair through an open door. Stopping in my tracks, I saw clearly that it was him, and that he was alone. I knew I had to seize the chance before it vanished, he was packing up his stuff, ready to go on to the host club.  
"Hey Hikaru." I said calmly, leaning against the door frame and crossing my arms, trying to look like I wasn't at all nervous. Instantly I saw his shoulders tense up, and he froze for a second, before slowly lowering a book into his bag.  
"Hey." He replied quietly. I took it as an invitation, entering the room, and moving over to the desk he was at. I didn't get too close though, not wanting to freak him out.  
"So, uh...we haven't really spoken much. Since the party, I mean. How have you been?" I asked, slightly awkwardly, despite my attempts to stay cool.  
"Umm...I've been..okay, I guess. ...How about you?" He wasn't looking at me, he just kept rearranging his bag, though it was obvious everything was already organised.  
"Honestly, a little worried about you. Look, Hikaru, I don't want you feeling upset or embarrassed about us dancing. I probably should have just let you go when you tried to pull away, and I'm sorry that I didn't, but...but I hope we're okay. I'd hate to think of you being upset because of me."  
Hikaru sighed, closing his bag, then finally looking at me.  
"I'm not upset because of you Yuki. I...It's my own fault. ...I...didn't realise how uncomfortable I'd be with everyone watching me. ...I'm sorry I made you worry about me." He looked down again, trying to hide the light blush that dusted his cheeks, and I smiled. Not the flirty smile that I wore more often than not while at school, but a much softer one.  
"No need to apologise Hikaru. I just want to know we're okay, so, are we okay?" After a moment, Hikaru nodded, and my soft smile changed to a friendly grin. "Great, now let's get to the host club. We don't want to be late."

The host club seemed like it was going to be fairly uneventful. Everybody went to their usual tables, and entertained guests as normal. I had my regulars. Hiroshi came almost every day now, and sat next to me every time. I had to admit, I really quite enjoyed his company, he was sweet, if a little unpredictable at times, and he had that nasty little habit of getting jealous over nothing. But he was still sweet, and he had been my first male customer, so I couldn't deny that I had a soft spot for him. Itsuki was there a lot too, but he mostly came just so he could gaze longingly after one twin or the other, and he did that so often that it made it difficult to have a conversation with him, so it didn't take me long to realise that, if he didn't speak to me first, it was best that I just left him alone. Machi, Kimiko, and Ayumi still put in regular appearances, but it had been obvious after the first week or so that they weren't overly thrilled with how much attention I gave the guys. It wasn't my fault, even though most people were used to the idea of a host for guys now, the ones that actually came were still nervous, they needed me to be extra attentive, just so they knew that they really were accepted, no, _wanted_ at my table. So, the girls only came once or twice a week.  
On this particular day, I had Hiroshi sitting next to me, his hand twitching on his knee as he watched mine creasing and smoothing the tablecloth, and he looked like he wanted nothing more than to hold my hand, but I thought that would be a bit too much like walking the line between hosting, and actually being on a date. Sure, he wasn't unattractive, and he was cute at times, but we were never going to be a couple, so boundaries needed to be enforced. Itsuki was sat next to Hiroshi, his elbow on the table and his chin resting in his hand as he watched the twins at their table. I'd tried to convince him to go over and talk to them, but he outright refused. Then there was Machi, smiling her ordinary 'sweeter-then-sweet' smile, and making polite chit chat, and blushing whenever I started flirting.  
Everything was normal, verging on boring, until the twins pulled one of their 'brotherly love' acts, and Itsuki got a pretty bad nose bleed. Can't say I blamed him though, it was pretty hot, which was a thought I was determined to keep to myself.  
Itsuki ran off to the bathroom to get some tissue and clean himself up, and, since I had to clean up the blood that had gotten on the chair and table, Hiroshi and Machi left a little early. Once everything was clean again, I went to check that Itsuki hadn't suffered too much blood loss, almost bumping into a shadowy figure lurking in the doorway. When I returned, all of the hosts were sitting on two sofas with this random girl, who was going on about some weird game. Something...memorial...I think.  
"Haru, what did I miss?" I asked quietly, leaning over the back of the sofa.  
"Well, that girl is called Renge, apparently she's Kyoya's fiancée. Also, she's an otaku, and she thinks that Tamaki's a phony." Haruhi explained, keeping her voice quiet too, since neither of us wanted to alert this Renge girl to the fact that we were talking.  
"Kyoya has a fiancée?" My voice almost got loud enough to hear, but I just about pulled it back down. I couldn't help being a little shocked, after all, I knew Kyoya was a pretty private guy, but being engaged seemed like something that would have come up at least once.  
"Yeah. None of us knew either, not even Tamaki-senpai." Haruhi replied. Now that was really odd. If Kyoya had really wanted to keep it secret, then I could kind of understand most of us not knowing, but Tamaki, how on earth could Tamaki not know?  
Well, as it turned out, Kyoya didn't know either. He'd never met the girl before, he just knew that she was the daughter of one of his family's business partners, and she'd turned up claiming that she was his fiancée, and spouting all this soppy stuff about him. I may have only been there a few weeks, but it wasn't hard to see that Kyoya was not the type to care for kittens or anything mushy like that. Still, the whole thing was pretty confusing.  
The only calm part was when Haru was first put in charge of Renge, and the two of them baked cookies. Renge's cookies were practically charcoal, but Haruhi's were just as nice as always. I grabbed one as soon as I had a chance, pecking Haru's cheek as a thank you. She pushed me away, like she always did, neither of us thinking much of it, since it was a pretty common occurrence for us, but Tamaki and the twins were suddenly on high alert.  
Hikaru moved fast, biting the cookie Haruhi was actually eating, and Kaoru was right behind him, licking a bit of cream off of Haru's cheek. I was ready to yell at them, but didn't have time to intervene before Tamaki, so instead I just glared at them, furious at them for doing that to my cousin, an unable to deny the tiny hint of jealously that came from Hikaru having started it. A few days before he'd been wanting to have a romantic dance with me, how could he now be flirting with Haruhi? Not that I had long to focus on it though, Renge started yelling about something, and before I knew it, she was in my face.  
"And you! ...Hmm...what to do with your character...Yes, that's perfect! You just put on this confident front, when really, you're ashamed that you're a man lover, but now that you're a host there are attractive men around you all the time, you must have trouble controlling yourself. You might be able to flirt with the guests, but as far as the other hosts are concerned, you're a blushing fool!" She explained, her voice never getting any quieter, and I just stood there, mouth agape, not really understanding what was happening, and having no idea what to say in return. In the end there was nothing I could do but nod, but I definitely didn't agree. And I didn't have to say why for Haruhi to get concerned about me.  
"Hey, Yuki, are you alright with this?" She asked me quietly, once Renge had moved on from me.  
"I don't think I have much of a choice, so, yeah, I guess." I replied, with a shrug and a small, forced smile. We all had to be nice to Renge, so it was true, I didn't have any choice but to be okay with my new role. Honestly, blushing fool wasn't too bad. I'd had worse, definitely. And I could probably do it. Probably. Depending on who I had to blush for.  
If it was Tamaki, then no. I could see the appeal, but, really not my type. Hunny-senpai, definitely not. He might be older than me but it would still just feel wrong. Mori? Yeah, I could do that. Tall, dark, handsome, really strong, probably actually really nice but just looks brooding and...okay, I had to stop there, because yeah, Mori was hot once I started thinking about it, and I didn't need to blush just yet. So, moving on. The twins. ...Not sure I could blush for them. Just because, Kaoru didn't interest me that much, and Hikaru...I kind of wanted him to blush for me. Not that I'd admit that. But he was cute when he got all embarrassed. Anyway, moving on. Everyone thought Haruhi was a guy, but hopefully I wouldn't have to blush over her because of the whole cousin thing. And then there was Kyoya. Kyoya, who actually, I didn't have to think too hard about to find hot, but since he was the one Renge was all about, I figured I wouldn't have to blush over him anytime soon.  
I seriously could not tell anyone how it happened, all I could say is 'Renge', but somehow, we wound up shooting a film. I don't even know why, but we did it. Haruhi had to run away from Hunny-senpai, who was really owning his whole 'bully' role, and Mori, was talking more than usual, that was good. I didn't really pay much attention though.  
I was in the twins' scene, in with a crowd of fangirls, cheering them on as they played basketball. Again, I don't know why, but they did look pretty good in shorts. Maybe blushing over them wouldn't be so hard after all.

The game was great, up until Kaoru got hurt. And there it was, the twin bond.

"Hikaru, it's okay, we can't share everything. It's my pain, and your game."  
"No! It hurts! It hurts so much! It's not your pain, it's _ours_."

The girls were gone. I stayed.

"You're both so brave. To love each other the way you do. So obvious, so undeniable. So public. It's beautiful." Throw in a sigh, add a little cracking to my voice. "I wish...I wish I could be part of...something...so beautiful."  
Kaoru was sat up by this point, Hikaru still holding his hand. But with one last look at his 'injured' brother, and a shared nod between them, (supposedly to represent their 'twin language' or something like that), Hikaru stood, and walked slowly over to me.

"You can be part of something, Yuki."

He took my hands in his.

"You could be part of something...with me, if you wanted to."

I couldn't remember if that was in the script. I couldn't remember my lines.

"...Hikaru..." His name came out of my mouth as a whisper.

"No matter how public. We could be something beautiful...together."

He took a step closer, almost completely closing the gap between us.

I swallowed thickly, not knowing what to say or do. Wide, pleading eyes searched my own.

This didn't look like acting. The burning in my cheeks wasn't acting.

I started to lean in...so did he...

"CUT!"


	7. Confusion

I'd thought Hikaru was awkward around me after the party, but as it turned out, that was nothing compared to the way he was with me after the film.

The whole situation with Renge had been sorted out. Haruhi almost got hurt, Tamaki was a hero, Kyoya smashed a camera lense, Renge learned not to stereotype, decided she wasn't engaged to Kyoya anymore, and vanished off to France.

But the situation between me and Hikaru, that had only gotten worse, and everyone knew it.  
We hadn't kissed. Someone, I'm not even sure who, had yelled cut, and we'd both just frozen for a second, like we both needed a chance to process what was happening, and where we were. I'm not sure which one of us pulled back first. I don't think it was me, but it could have been. We hadn't spoken since, but I had noticed how quiet he was. Kaoru had to take more of a leading role in their hosting sessions.  
It didn't help that though Kyoya had smashed the camera, he hadn't damaged the tape, so he had all the footage. And he used it. I didn't watch it myself, so I don't know how much anyone saw. But people knew. All I heard for days was how wonderful it was to see me so vulnerable, longing for love. Only two comments were made, that I heard anyway, about Hikaru's offer to me. They weren't made to me. But I overheard people talking to Hikaru.

The first was a guest, I don't know her name, asking Hikaru if he and I were an item, and if they would ever see us together. He answered no. Didn't specify which question he was answering.

The second was Kaoru, asking if he'd wanted me to accept. If he'd wanted me to kiss him. I didn't hear an answer. Couldn't decide if I was glad or not.

That wasn't the only thing I couldn't decide. I couldn't decide whether it was real or acting. I couldn't decide what I would have said if I'd been able to speak at the time. I couldn't decide whether pulling back was the best option, or if I should have kissed him. The only thing I did decide, was that I needed to talk to Hikaru, and sort this all out with him.

No way was he going to let me get him on his own again though, so I figured I had to go through Kaoru. I caught him on his own, having left his table to get more tea for his and Hikaru's current guests.

"Hey, Kaoru, can I talk to you for a second?"  
He glanced over his shoulder at his brother, clearly hesitant. I wondered what Hikaru had said to him.  
"Sure. But I can't keep them waiting long."  
"Okay, great, thanks. ...Look, I know things have been pretty awkward since the whole Renge-film thing. I think I need to talk to Hikaru and see if we can make things less awkward again, but I really doubt he'll agree to talk to me. So, do you think maybe you could try and convince him to?"  
Another glance over his shoulder, followed by a small sigh.  
"I don't know how much good it'll do, but, I'll try."  
"Thanks Kaoru, I owe you one."

It took almost a week before my plan worked. Which actually kind of helped, since it gave me a chance to sort my head out a little. Only a little. I still didn't know what the right thing to do was, or what I should have done, but I had a better idea of what I wanted to do.

As a sort of punishment for not paying my guests enough attention, (which I'd been too distracted to do but I'd still been trying, thank you Kyoya), I had to stay behind and clean up after the host club was done for the day. I hadn't expected Hikaru to show up, but he did.

"You wanted to talk to me?" I turned round, putting the small stack of plates I was carrying down on a nearby table. He looked worried, so that was the first thing I had to try and deal with.  
"Yeah. I, uh...I thought, that maybe, if we talked about stuff, we could maybe, make things a little less...awkward, you know?" My plan to be smooth wasn't working out too well.  
"Okay."  
The silence got uneasy after about three nanoseconds, and I tried desperately to think of something to say.  
No point starting off with anything that wasn't going to help us, and my mind flicked back to the questions I'd overheard Kaoru asking. Without me really telling it to, my mouth opened.  
"Did you really mean it?"  
"What?"  
"What you said, when we were filming our scene, did you mean it?" More worry, and a tint of regret, flooded into his eyes, and I knew I had to try and fix my mistake. "I just, I don't remember those lines being in the script, so...I guess...was it just improvisation, to...improve the scene? Or...did you-"  
"-I meant it."

I didn't expect the interruption, but that wasn't why it took me a few seconds to realise what it was that he had said. When I had, I didn't really know what to do.

"..Oh."  
He sighed.  
"It's okay, Yuki. I guess, I got a little carried away. But it's fine okay, it doesn't matter. We're good, alright."  
"But-" I started speaking before I'd finished thinking, and cut myself off for a moment. His eyes locked to mine, and I could have sworn they were just full of hope. Maybe I was ignoring the sorrow, or imagined it afterwards.  
"It...has to matter. You meant it, so, it matters. ...But, if you meant it...does that mean...do you, _like_ _me_?"

The answer seemed pretty obvious. He'd done that, he'd wanted to dance with me at the party. But he'd also flirted with Haruhi, when she'd baked those cookies. And he was always doing his 'brotherly love' act, so what if he was really just looking to expand his book of tricks for hosting?

"Yes. Kind of. I don't know. ...I do but, I don't think I want to. ..I mean, I've felt things for guys before, but, not like this. You're always just _there,_ hosting, and flirting, and I know that's what you're supposed to do but I want you to aim it at me and I shouldn't because you're just another host, you're supposed to be for the rest of the school, not for me, and-"  
"Hikaru." I said his name softly, but it was enough to stop him. He hadn't seemed to realise he'd gone off on a little rant, but as soon as he stopped he did, and drew back, crossing his arms. I took a step towards him. "Hikaru, it's okay. You're confused, I get that. I am too."

"You are?" I took another step. He didn't make any attempt to move away, so I took another, and another, until I was right in front of him.  
"Yeah, I am. But, I think I know something we can try that might make us both get a little less confused."  
He unfolded his arms, letting them fall to his sides, hands clenched into fists.  
"What's that?" He asked, a slight tremble to his voice.  
I reached up with one hand, gently cupping his cheek. I felt him shiver at my touch, but he still didn't move away, so I leaned down, stopping not even an inch from his face.  
"This." I whispered, meeting his lips softly with my own.

I didn't go straight home that night. Instead, I went to Haruhi's, not waiting for her to open the door after I'd knocked, just letting myself in.  
"Oh, Yuki, it's just you. What are you doing here?"  
I went straight into pacing, not quite sure what I was feeling.  
"I kissed him. I was only going to talk to him but I kissed him. I don't think I should have but he kissed me back and it felt so good, his lips were so soft and it just worked, and I felt so much better and I think he did too. But what if he doesn't now, I mean what if he regrets it? I can't take it _back,_ I'm the one that kissed him, after he said he liked me, so now he's going to think that I like him too, which I can't say I don't, but I also can't say I do, you know?" I paused, turning to Haruhi, who was just looking at me in confusion.  
"No, Yuki, I don't know. Who are you talking about?"  
"Hikaru." My tone told her it should have been obvious. Which to me, it was, because really, after how awkward things had been between us, how could it not be? But then again, Haruhi had never been very good at spotting things like that.

"Wait, Hikaru likes you?"  
"That's what he said."  
"And you kissed him?"  
"Yep. More than once, actually."  
"So you like him too?"  
"I'm not sure."  
"How can you not be sure? You can't kiss someone that likes you and then not be sure you like them."  
"Yeah I know but I'm just not sure. I mean he's cute and all, not just with his looks, but that is a bonus actually, but I don't know, you know? He's never been with a guy before, he couldn't stand people looking at us when we danced at the party. Doesn't he realise that if we get together everyone will know? Are hosts even allowed to date? I've no idea."  
Silence fell for a minute, as Haruhi thought.  
"You know, it sounds to me like you're more worried about him not coping than you not being interested."  
"...Well, maybe. But I still don't know what to do."  
"So don't do anything. Talk to him, tell him you don't want a relationship right now."  
"But I do." It wasn't a response I'd planned, just one I said without thinking, but it made me think, and it gave me an idea.  
"There you go then, tell him that."  
"No. I've got a better idea."  
I left without telling her what it was.


End file.
